Difference between revisions of "Digital Capture"

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Capturing a PC game is both easier and harder than capturing a console game. Unlike consoles, a PC game is already transmitting its video information in digital format; the only thing that is needed is for this signal to end up in a file as well. However, doing so will require running a recording program alongside your game, which may or may not cause problems.
 
Capturing a PC game is both easier and harder than capturing a console game. Unlike consoles, a PC game is already transmitting its video information in digital format; the only thing that is needed is for this signal to end up in a file as well. However, doing so will require running a recording program alongside your game, which may or may not cause problems.
  
−
==FRAPS==
+
=FRAPS=
 +
==Introduction==
 +
[http://www.fraps.com FRAPS] is by far the most commonly used method to record speedrun videos on the PC. For a long period of time FRAPS wasn't a very good program to use for this since it made games behave in weird ways and caused massive input lag, among other things. It has slowly been improved bit by bit and now it's actually a program you can recommend without being the slightest sarcastic. The program is running in the background and records the game you're playing, a process that's quite heavy on the hardware in most cases. Spite the hardware requirements FRAPS does have a few advantages over other recording methods such as DVD recorders.
  
−
[http://www.fraps.com FRAPS] is probably the most utilized gameplay recording program for PC, using its own codec to make very high quality recordings. It must, however, be purchased (for $37) in order to make videos of any appreciable length. The program doesn’t work equally well with all games and systems so you might run into problems no one else have run into, so you have to be prepared to do a little trial and error when using FRAPS.
+
1. Record in any resolution you want.
  
−
===The Recording Process===
+
2. Extremely high quality recordings.
−
While you run the game you want to record you should run FRAPS in the background, otherwise you won't be able to record anything with it. FRAPS will save your recording as an AVI file with PCM sound at 1411kbps and a near to lossless quality for video. Technically the quality isn’t lossless, but it’s so good so the human eye can’t spot the loss even if you take snapshots from the movie and compare side by side with in-game snapshots. FRAPS 3.0.0 (or later) has additional recording options such as being able to record video in lossless RGB and recording sound from 2 sources simultaneously. Lossless RGB recording is only recommended if you're running a graphically simple game or have a very fast hard drive. Recording sound from more than 1 source is never to be used for content that are going to be submitted to SpeedDemosArchive.
+
  
−
The size of your recordings will vary depending on how graphically intense the game is and the frame rate you record at, this is because FRAPS will adjust the bitrate for the video depending on how much it actually needs to keep the quality.
+
3. Easier encoding. No need to transfer your video from a DVD to your computer since it's already on your hard drive, ready for encoding.
  
−
When choosing frame rate to record at you should check what your computer is actually capable of handling in the game you want to record, while FRAPS is recording. For example, if you try to record at 60 frames per second but your frame rate constantly dips below 40 frames per second it’s a clear sign that you shouldn’t record that game at 60 frames per second on your computer. Having such huge frame rate drops will make the video appear choppy, and recording that game at 30 frames per second will probably give you a smoother recording.
+
4. No need to buy media such as discs.
  
−
When choosing resolution and image quality settings you should check for the same thing as when choosing frame rate. Just keep in mind that the more graphical details added the harder it will be to get a good quality once you encode the video, because more graphical detail requires a higher bitrate to keep the quality.
+
5. Cheaper than a good DVD recorder.
  
−
For synchronization purposes FRAPS limits the frame rate of the game to the frame rate you have set FRAPS to record at. This means that if you have set FRAPS to record at 30 frames per second, your frame rate won't go higher than that when you record your playing.
+
The trial version of the program is not sufficient for recording runs for SpeedDemosArchive since it has a limit of 30 seconds per video and it also puts a watermark in them, and we do not like watermarks. The software can be bought for $37 which is much cheaper than buying a good DVD recorder, for example. Any updates after the initial purchase are free of charge. Other methods of acquiring the full version are not supported nor encouraged by SpeedDemosArchive.
  
−
To prevent issues with large files FRAPS begins to record to a new AVI when the file it's currently writing reaches a size of 3.9GB (binary system). Look carefully at the recordings if you make several recordings in a row, so you don’t delete files you want to keep.
+
==Recommended Hardware==
 +
'''Dual-core (or better) CPU''': This will allow you to run the game and FRAPS on different CPU cores, significantly improving the recording performance.
  
−
===Games You Can Record Using FRAPS===
+
'''2GB (or more) of RAM''': Even though FRAPS isn't the most memory hungry application you want to make sure there's plenty of RAM to avoid sudden disk swapping that can ruin your recording.
−
Just about any game that uses Direct3D or OpenGL API to draw the image you see on the screen can be recorded using FRAPS. As of version 2.9.9 FRAPS's ability to record DirectDraw games was greatly improved.
+
  
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===A Few Words of Wisdom===
+
'''2 hard drives''': Same reason we want at least a dual-core CPU. Running the game on one drive while having FRAPS record to another will greatly improve recording performance. Note that drive partitions do not fall under this category, it has to be 2 physical drives.
−
For best recording performance you should always turn off things like anti-aliasing and anisotropic filtering. If you have more than one hard drive in your system do not record to the drive where you run the game, note that partitioned drives do not fall under this category, it has to be two physical drives. Also, if you record to a drive where you have a lot of other files make sure you have defragmented that drive before you record. Solid-State Drives do not need defragmentation, nor should they be defragmented since this will hamper performance on this kind of drives. If you think that the recording performance is worse than it should be it can be the result of you using the wrong graphics driver for that FRAPS version. The graphics driver you should use for each FRAPS version is always specified in the readme, if you're using third-party drivers like DNA you should uninstall those and use official drivers from [http://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx Nvidia] or [http://game.amd.com/us-en/drivers_catalyst.aspx ATI], depending on what chip manufacturer it is. It's recommended to use the latest driver in most cases.
+
  
−
===Common Problems===
+
'''Soundcard that can record using either Stereo Mix or ”What U Hear”''': By far the easiest way of recording sound. Just about all soundcards will have Stereo Mix, somewhat modern Creative Soundblaster cards will have ”What U Hear” which is the exact same thing but with a ridiculous name.
−
The FRAPS Chop: This thing occurs on random and it causes a very severe audio/video desync in your recording. The amount of desync will also change back and forth, which in almost all cases makes it impossible to repair. You notice it by that the last sound is played twice and the game seem to freeze for a short period of time.
+
  
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Choppy recordings: These can be caused by a variety of factors, and mostly occur in first person shooters. Very fast mouse movements, generally demanding games and low frame rates are some of the things that can cause a choppy recording. This problem can be very specific in some games and only occur in a certain level in that game.
+
'''Graphics card''': Anything that has Nvidia GeForce or ATI Radeon printed on it. You want something that can at least keep a solid 30 frames per second when running the game with the resolution you're recording in. I have yet to find any solid information if the graphics card play any further role when it comes to FRAPS.
 +
 
 +
==FRAPS Application Settings==
 +
Note: This part of the guide is written for FRAPS version 3.x. If you're using an earlier version some settings will not be available.
 +
 
 +
===The General Tab===
 +
No settings that are important for your recordings.
 +
 
 +
===The FPS Tab===
 +
Depending on if there are important HUD elements in your game you might want to change the position of the Overlay Corner so it doesn't obscure important information. Just click the corner where you want FRAPS to display the fps-meter.
 +
 
 +
===The Movies Tab===
 +
'''Folder to save movies in''': Make sure this folder is located on a drive where you are not running any heavy applications such as the game you're recording. Also try to avoid recording to the drive where Windows is installed.
 +
 
 +
'''Video Capture Hotkey''': Ideally you don't want this button anywhere near the buttons you're using in the game you're recording, you don't want to push this button by accident in the middle of a run. To change key simply click the field and then push the button you want to use.
 +
 
 +
'''Video Capture Settings (fps)''': Here you have to do a little trial and error to see what your computer is actually capable of recording at. If you are trying 60 and the fps isn't steady at 60 you have to lower the recording frame rate or else you will get a choppy video. 30 fps shouldn't be a problem for most systems, but this can vary greatly depending on the game you're recording. FRAPS will also cap the frame rate of the game to the frame rate you've chosen to record at.
 +
 
 +
'''Video Capture Settings (image size)''': This should in almost all cases be set to full-size. If you are recording a game where the graphics scale very badly, i.e getting really ugly as you lower the resolution, it can be better to run the game at a higher resolution and have FRAPS lower the video resolution. Full-size requires more of the hard drive while half-size requires more CPU power due to the extra processing of resizing the image.
 +
 
 +
'''Sound Capture Settings (main)''': Record XP/Vista/Windows 7 sound, always checked and set to Stereo. There are some settings in Windows necessary to make this work properly, we'll get to that in the Windows Settings section.
 +
 
 +
'''Sound Capture Settings (external input)''': Always disabled when recording content intended for SpeedDemosArchive.
 +
 
 +
===Misc. Recording Settings Located In Movies Tab===
 +
'''Don't sync audio and video''': Disabled.
 +
 
 +
'''Hide mouse cursor in video''': Disabled.
 +
 
 +
'''Force lossless RGB capture''': If you have a VERY fast hard drive, such as a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solid-state_drive solid-state drive], you might want to try recording with this option enabled. Keep in mind that this will eat hard drive space like nothing else, so don't use it for longer recordings.
 +
 
 +
===Screenshot Tab===
 +
No settings here are important for your recordings.
 +
 
 +
==Windows Settings==
 +
Note: This part of the guide is done using Windows Vista. Menus and options might look different on other versions of Windows.
 +
 
 +
===Drivers===
 +
Make sure you have the latest official drivers for everything. Do not use third-party drivers when recording with FRAPS.
 +
 
 +
===Driver Download===
 +
This is a list of the most commonly used official drivers/driver packages. These links will point you to the manufacturer's driver download section, not directly to driver installation files.
 +
 
 +
[http://www.amd.com/us/Pages/AMDHomePage.aspx AMD/ATI] chipset, integrated motherboard features and graphics.
 +
 
 +
[http://support.creative.com/Products/Products.aspx?catid=1 Creative] sound.
 +
 
 +
[http://www.intel.com/p/en_US/support?iid=hdr+support Intel] chipset and integrated motherboard features.
 +
 
 +
[http://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx Nvidia] chipset, integrated motherboard features and graphics.
 +
 
 +
===Sound Recording===
 +
To get to the recording options click the Start Menu icon, settings, Control Panel, Sound, Recording.
 +
 
 +
It should look something like this.
 +
 
 +
Make sure that Stereo Mix or What U Hear is selected as the default recording device. Sound recording with FRAPS should now work without problems.
 +
 
 +
==Game Settings==
 +
These settings will vary greatly depending on the game you're recording, but there are a few rules of thumb that goes for most games. In most cases you want to go with image quality settings that are referred to as ”normal” or ”medium”.
 +
 
 +
'''Anisotropic Filtering''': Turn this off.
 +
 
 +
'''Anti-Aliasing''': Turn this off.
 +
 
 +
'''Nvidia PhysX''': Turn this off.
 +
 
 +
Not only do these settings raise the bitrate requirement for the video, they also put a lot more stress on your graphics card(s) which in turn might prevent you from running the game at a solid recording frame rate. Solid recording frame rate is more important than in-game graphics.
 +
 
 +
'''Vsync/vertical retrace''': If you're experiencing lag in your game turn this off. Do not be alarmed if you see [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Screen_tearing tearing], it will not show up in your video since the video frames are captured before they're sent off to the monitor.
 +
 
 +
==Can I Record All Games With FRAPS?==
 +
Unfortunately not. FRAPS works great for games that are using [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Directx DirectX] or [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opengl OpenGL], but games using different rendering methods will most likely not work. FRAPS versions released prior to 2.9.9 might also have difficulties recording [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Directdraw DirectDraw] rendered games.
 +
 
 +
==To Think About Before Recording==
 +
Shut down or disable any programs that might interfere with the game or FRAPS. Typical programs that possess this ability are anti-virus programs and instant messaging services that play sounds or display pop-ups during events. VoIP and voice chat programs, such as Ventrilo or Skype, should be turned off or muted.
 +
 
 +
Make sure that the hard drive you're recording to has plenty of free space and is [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defragmentation defragmented]. If you have a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solid-state_drive solid-state drive] defragmentation is unnecessary and actually hampers performance, so avoid it if you have one of these.
  
 
Return to the [[Main Page|front page]].
 
Return to the [[Main Page|front page]].

Revision as of 14:25, 13 November 2009

Capturing a PC game is both easier and harder than capturing a console game. Unlike consoles, a PC game is already transmitting its video information in digital format; the only thing that is needed is for this signal to end up in a file as well. However, doing so will require running a recording program alongside your game, which may or may not cause problems.

FRAPS

Introduction

FRAPS is by far the most commonly used method to record speedrun videos on the PC. For a long period of time FRAPS wasn't a very good program to use for this since it made games behave in weird ways and caused massive input lag, among other things. It has slowly been improved bit by bit and now it's actually a program you can recommend without being the slightest sarcastic. The program is running in the background and records the game you're playing, a process that's quite heavy on the hardware in most cases. Spite the hardware requirements FRAPS does have a few advantages over other recording methods such as DVD recorders.

1. Record in any resolution you want.

2. Extremely high quality recordings.

3. Easier encoding. No need to transfer your video from a DVD to your computer since it's already on your hard drive, ready for encoding.

4. No need to buy media such as discs.

5. Cheaper than a good DVD recorder.

The trial version of the program is not sufficient for recording runs for SpeedDemosArchive since it has a limit of 30 seconds per video and it also puts a watermark in them, and we do not like watermarks. The software can be bought for $37 which is much cheaper than buying a good DVD recorder, for example. Any updates after the initial purchase are free of charge. Other methods of acquiring the full version are not supported nor encouraged by SpeedDemosArchive.

Recommended Hardware

Dual-core (or better) CPU: This will allow you to run the game and FRAPS on different CPU cores, significantly improving the recording performance.

2GB (or more) of RAM: Even though FRAPS isn't the most memory hungry application you want to make sure there's plenty of RAM to avoid sudden disk swapping that can ruin your recording.

2 hard drives: Same reason we want at least a dual-core CPU. Running the game on one drive while having FRAPS record to another will greatly improve recording performance. Note that drive partitions do not fall under this category, it has to be 2 physical drives.

Soundcard that can record using either Stereo Mix or ”What U Hear”: By far the easiest way of recording sound. Just about all soundcards will have Stereo Mix, somewhat modern Creative Soundblaster cards will have ”What U Hear” which is the exact same thing but with a ridiculous name.

Graphics card: Anything that has Nvidia GeForce or ATI Radeon printed on it. You want something that can at least keep a solid 30 frames per second when running the game with the resolution you're recording in. I have yet to find any solid information if the graphics card play any further role when it comes to FRAPS.

FRAPS Application Settings

Note: This part of the guide is written for FRAPS version 3.x. If you're using an earlier version some settings will not be available.

The General Tab

No settings that are important for your recordings.

The FPS Tab

Depending on if there are important HUD elements in your game you might want to change the position of the Overlay Corner so it doesn't obscure important information. Just click the corner where you want FRAPS to display the fps-meter.

The Movies Tab

Folder to save movies in: Make sure this folder is located on a drive where you are not running any heavy applications such as the game you're recording. Also try to avoid recording to the drive where Windows is installed.

Video Capture Hotkey: Ideally you don't want this button anywhere near the buttons you're using in the game you're recording, you don't want to push this button by accident in the middle of a run. To change key simply click the field and then push the button you want to use.

Video Capture Settings (fps): Here you have to do a little trial and error to see what your computer is actually capable of recording at. If you are trying 60 and the fps isn't steady at 60 you have to lower the recording frame rate or else you will get a choppy video. 30 fps shouldn't be a problem for most systems, but this can vary greatly depending on the game you're recording. FRAPS will also cap the frame rate of the game to the frame rate you've chosen to record at.

Video Capture Settings (image size): This should in almost all cases be set to full-size. If you are recording a game where the graphics scale very badly, i.e getting really ugly as you lower the resolution, it can be better to run the game at a higher resolution and have FRAPS lower the video resolution. Full-size requires more of the hard drive while half-size requires more CPU power due to the extra processing of resizing the image.

Sound Capture Settings (main): Record XP/Vista/Windows 7 sound, always checked and set to Stereo. There are some settings in Windows necessary to make this work properly, we'll get to that in the Windows Settings section.

Sound Capture Settings (external input): Always disabled when recording content intended for SpeedDemosArchive.

Misc. Recording Settings Located In Movies Tab

Don't sync audio and video: Disabled.

Hide mouse cursor in video: Disabled.

Force lossless RGB capture: If you have a VERY fast hard drive, such as a solid-state drive, you might want to try recording with this option enabled. Keep in mind that this will eat hard drive space like nothing else, so don't use it for longer recordings.

Screenshot Tab

No settings here are important for your recordings.

Windows Settings

Note: This part of the guide is done using Windows Vista. Menus and options might look different on other versions of Windows.

Drivers

Make sure you have the latest official drivers for everything. Do not use third-party drivers when recording with FRAPS.

Driver Download

This is a list of the most commonly used official drivers/driver packages. These links will point you to the manufacturer's driver download section, not directly to driver installation files.

AMD/ATI chipset, integrated motherboard features and graphics.

Creative sound.

Intel chipset and integrated motherboard features.

Nvidia chipset, integrated motherboard features and graphics.

Sound Recording

To get to the recording options click the Start Menu icon, settings, Control Panel, Sound, Recording.

It should look something like this.

Make sure that Stereo Mix or What U Hear is selected as the default recording device. Sound recording with FRAPS should now work without problems.

Game Settings

These settings will vary greatly depending on the game you're recording, but there are a few rules of thumb that goes for most games. In most cases you want to go with image quality settings that are referred to as ”normal” or ”medium”.

Anisotropic Filtering: Turn this off.

Anti-Aliasing: Turn this off.

Nvidia PhysX: Turn this off.

Not only do these settings raise the bitrate requirement for the video, they also put a lot more stress on your graphics card(s) which in turn might prevent you from running the game at a solid recording frame rate. Solid recording frame rate is more important than in-game graphics.

Vsync/vertical retrace: If you're experiencing lag in your game turn this off. Do not be alarmed if you see tearing, it will not show up in your video since the video frames are captured before they're sent off to the monitor.

Can I Record All Games With FRAPS?

Unfortunately not. FRAPS works great for games that are using DirectX or OpenGL, but games using different rendering methods will most likely not work. FRAPS versions released prior to 2.9.9 might also have difficulties recording DirectDraw rendered games.

To Think About Before Recording

Shut down or disable any programs that might interfere with the game or FRAPS. Typical programs that possess this ability are anti-virus programs and instant messaging services that play sounds or display pop-ups during events. VoIP and voice chat programs, such as Ventrilo or Skype, should be turned off or muted.

Make sure that the hard drive you're recording to has plenty of free space and is defragmented. If you have a solid-state drive defragmentation is unnecessary and actually hampers performance, so avoid it if you have one of these.

Return to the front page.

Retrieved from "https://kb.speeddemosarchive.com/index.php?title=Digital_Capture&oldid=4163"
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